The artists and engineers of BRC Imagination Arts have been in the business of creating special venue attractions for the past decade. In fact, if your summer vacation plans took you to the Disney-MGM Studios Theme Park in Florida, NASA/Johnson Space Center's Visitor Center in Texas or Knott's Berry Farm in California, then you probably experienced a little of their collective genius at work.

George Wiktor, Vice President, Production, BRC Imagination Arts. © BRC Imagination Arts

Says executive producer, vice president George Wiktor, "In essence everything we create is for people on holiday. Therefore everything we do has to be entertaining. That doesn't mean it can't be informative, but it does mean our work has to transport vacationers outside of themselves." Wiktor adds that even though his company creates events and attractions using a multitude of formats and creative techniques--including animation--the process of production never overshadows the end result. Since content is the one thing that keeps people coming back to attractions year after year, the quality of content, rather than the technology used to create it, must remain the focus. And, if there's one thing Wiktor has learned about content over the years--it's gotta be fun.

Says Wiktor, "We always imbue our projects with a sense of humor, wonder and emotion--all those elements that people love to share in a group. In fact, that's one of our basic rules. It's not technological at all but its important--that special venues are group experiences; shared events between family, friends and strangers. It's definitely more fun to ride a roller coaster after watching hundreds of strangers get on a ride, scream and yell and then get off, than it would be to not have seen them. It sounds cliché, but when we are designing and producing a project we always say to ourselves, 'Remember. It's a party.' "

Magic of Disney, Walter Cronkite and Robin Williams. © Walt Disney Company

And a party it's certainly been for this company that opened back in 1981. Hidden behind an unassuming brick facade in an industrial area of Burbank, California, BRC is a think tank of 25 visual artists that, along with an army of freelancers, have won over 200 international awards and two Oscar nominations for their films and attractions at World Fairs, aquariums, museums and visitors centers.

"We're also known as the funny format filmmakers," jokes producer Marci Carlin, who says that her company has produced films for every format imaginable, for viewing in every kind of theater--even venues that entirely surround the audience. Excusing herself for what sounds like corporate propaganda, she adds, "Basically we sell solutions"--a catchy phrase that definitely describes BRC's core business.